


Sad

by yeaka



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Ficlet, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-11
Updated: 2019-05-11
Packaged: 2020-03-01 04:03:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18792598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yeaka/pseuds/yeaka
Summary: Ignis supervises Noctis’ first play-date with Prompto.





	Sad

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own Final Fantasy XV or any of its contents, and I’m not making any money off this.

“I’m not a baby,” Noctis grumbles from the passenger seat, which makes him sound more infantile than he actually is. He doesn’t even look at Ignis when he says it—he’s slumped against the window, cheek pressed into the tinted glass and eyes half-lidded with apparent boredom. Ignis holds in a sigh.

“I’m aware of that. Nevertheless, you couldn’t honestly have expected to be allowed into a new environment with a complete stranger and no protection.” Ignis doesn’t bother pointing out the obvious: that Noctis is the future king of their country, and it’s frankly a small miracle that they managed to pull this off without the entire Crownsguard in tow. Then again, Ignis reminds himself, Noctis probably isn’t aware of just how many trained officers are always undercover as parents or teachers at his school.

“Why do you even have Gladio training me then? You really think I can’t handle one kid my age? Prom’s like... a stick. I could break him in half.”

“Then perhaps it would help to imagine I’m there to protect _him_ , as well as supervise your behaviour.”

Noctis rolls his eyes. In truth, Ignis doubts Noctis could do anything so abhorrent as to cause a scandal over a teenage play date. But it’s Ignis’ job to watch him, and when an order comes directly from the king, Ignis is powerless to refuse. He was asked to follow along to Noctis’ first time out with a new, non-Citadel-sanctioned friend, and he’ll do so to the best of his ability. With his eyes still fixed on the road and his hands on the wheel, Ignis insists, “I don’t plan on interfering with your afternoon, Noct. I might be tagging along, but I intend to do so as silently and subtly as possible. I’m sure once you two get comfortable, you’ll forget I’m even there at all.”

Noctis snorts but doesn’t bother fighting him anymore. The car announces a new set of directions, and Ignis pulls off the busy street into a quieter neighbourhood. A bit of looking around, and he finds the apartment building he’s looking for—he was given pictures after the place was first canvassed. The Crownsguard found no threats in the immediate area, and all of the residents, even those unaware the prince would be coming anywhere near them, passed the in-depth background checks. Ignis pulls into the back lot and parks, then climbs out of the car.

Noctis waits for Ignis to come around and open his door. Ignis does his best not to show his exasperation. He’s hoping exposure to other, more _normal_ boy of his age will help ease the tension Noctis has been displaying lately. It takes a great deal of patience to be a friend to the crown most of the time, but Ignis does deeply care for Noctis and pushes through. 

They haven’t even made it to the doorbell when the door swings open, a smiley, bubbly blond greeting them from the other side. His trim form only lightly shakes with nerves, something that doesn’t surprise Ignis. He’s seen Prompto Argentum a few times around the school grounds, and the boy seems nice enough, bright and pleasant—a welcome contrast to Noctis’ often dull mood. It helps that Ignis believes Prompto’s interest in Noctis to be truly genuine, and not based simply on Noctis’ title. He’s dressed in tight black jeans and a coeurl-pattern shirt, complete with fingerless gloves and a wristband, casual but with a stylish flare. He chirps, “Hey, Noct!” And then, “Uh, hi...?”

“This is Iggy,” Noctis grunts, nodding back towards Ignis. “He’s my... friend.” Prompto smiles warmly at Ignis too. He’s surely seen Ignis with Noctis before, and Noctis seems to clue into that, because he continues, “He’s, uh... supposed to... y’know...”

“I’ll be supervising,” Ignis smoothly provides. “Hopefully such measures won’t be necessary once you’ve been in the picture a little longer, but I’m afraid that for the initial visit, the crown would like some assurances of the prince’s safety.”

Ignis doesn’t have to look to know Noctis is dying of embarrassment. He only feels a _little_ bad about it. Prompto seems to take it in stride, answering, “Sure. I mean, I kinda thought there’d be a bunch of big, burly bodyguards, so this ain’t so bad.” He laughs, and Noctis shakily joins in. He doesn’t mention how Gladiolus was actually the king’s first choice, but Ignis promised he could guard Prompto just as well and be a little less obtrusive.

Ignis adds, “Please, pretend I’m not even here. I’m simply an observer; I won’t interfere in any way.”

Noctis actually groans and lifts one hand to hide his face. Prompto evidently deems Noctis’ friendship worth the weirdness, because he agrees, “Cool.” Then he steps aside and gestures into the apartment, offering, “Please, come in!”

They do, Noctis kicking out of his shoes like a cretin and Ignis properly unlacing his and hanging up his jacket. Prompto guides them through the humble, unassuming entryway and kitchen-dining area, then on to the attached living room. “It’s not much,” he provides, looking a little sheepish, “But, uh... welcome? My parents are out of town, so...” Ignis files that away, glad that they’ll at least have one adult around. Even if that adult is only actually a couple of years older than them, it’s something. Their disparate attitudes makes Ignis really _feel_ like the adult in the relationship.

Noctis looks around, taking the simple décor in, then plops down onto the couch in the living room. Prompto drops down next to him, conspicuously close, and Ignis takes the armchair off to the side. Nerves are noticeably creeping into Prompto’s voice as he asks, “So, uh... what do you wanna do?”

“What games have you got?” Noctis asks. He’s already leaning over the coffee table, where several cases are scattered about, most titles that Noctis already owns. Before Prompto can answer, Noctis chooses for himself and picks one up. “Hey, this one’s really good. I mean, not as good as the others in the series story-wise, but the graphics are way better.”

“Yeah? I haven’t gotten very far yet, but I had fun so far... I kept getting stuck trying to find this stupid map piece, though.”

“You play it then, I’ll tell you where to go.”

“You sure? I’ve got two player games...”

“Yeah, we can play those after...”

Prompto grins and accepts the decision. He retrieves the game and goes to put it in the machine. Noctis’ eyes follow Prompto around the room, already lost in his own little gamer world. Ignis games casually, but as his busy schedule eats up most chances at free time, he doesn’t play nearly as much as Noctis. Once the game’s on, a new conversation about the clunky old car the characters start off driving brews up. It flows easily between Noctis and Prompto. Already, they seem to have forgotten Ignis. 

Reclining back in his chair, Ignis relaxes into his job. He pointedly stays quiet, allowing and listening to the two boys chatter away. They end up swapping the controller around, Prompto mostly playing with Noctis hovering over his shoulder, then Noctis taking over the intense parts whenever Prompto needs rescuing. The two work into a steady, on-going talk that covers everything from the current game to King’s Knight, to school, to chocobos, to Prompto bemoaning fishing mini-games and Noctis insisting they’re always the best part. Ignis can’t help the smile that that brings him. It’s good to see Noctis just having _fun_.

Then, when the four main characters are pulling into a diner for a stat-boosting meal, someone’s stomach growls. A blush blooms across Noctis’ cheeks, and Prompto laughs, “Looks good, right? Wish we had pizza!”

“We should order some,” Noctis agrees, but Prompto awkwardly shifts and shakes his head.

“Sorry, dude, takeout’s not really in the budget...”

“I can pay, no problem.”

“Nah, man, I’m supposed to be hosting you! Besides, if you spend money the first time we hang out, they’ll think I’m using you for cash...” Prompto doesn’t need to clarify who ‘they’ is. His eyes do skitter towards Ignis, who says nothing. 

Noctis’ face twists in annoyance, but he doesn’t argue; he seems to be on good behaviour for Prompto. Prompto offers, “Maybe we could make something? I’ve got cup noodles...”

“I want pizza though,” Noctis mutters. Before Ignis can cough loudly and signal for him not to be rude, he goes on, “Maybe we can make some? It’s not that hard; Iggy does it all the time.” A pause, and Noctis grins. “Except we don’t have to put vegetables on it.”

Ignis frowns, but neither of the boys is looking at him. Prompto climbs off the couch, glancing towards the kitchen. “I dunno if we have the ingredients...” He wanders over there anyway, and Noctis follows right behind him. Ignis waits a moment before getting up and strolling slowly after them.

Prompto checks both fridge and freezer before announcing, thick with disappointment, “Nah, we don’t have any dough.”

“That’s fine,” Noctis says, reaching out to slide a loaf of bread on the counter over. “We can use this.”

Ignis _stares_ at Noctis. Noctis doesn’t look back at him. Evidently, Prompto’s no better, because he nods and agrees, “Okay. What else do we need?”

Noctis thinks for a moment. “Do you have any kind of tomato sauce?”

Prompto rifles through a few cupboards, then produces a red bottle from the fridge. “I’ve got ketchup.”

“Cool.” Noctis moves it next to the bread. “Cheese...”

The fridge opens and closes again. “Check! Oh, but the grater’s missing; I was looking for it yesterday...”

“That’s fine,” Noctis insists. He takes the cheese from Prompto anyway, then finds the chopping boards on the counter and brings one over. “I’ll cut it...”

“Here, I’ll get a knife...”

“That’s a butter knife.”

“Sorry, ‘only got one sharp one and it’s in the dishwasher.”

“That’s fine, I got it.”

Noctis steps back, and to Ignis’ utter horror, he summons a long, thin sword into his right hand. Prompto visibly startles. The prince’s magic is common knowledge, but commoners don’t typically see him summoning weapons in domestic situations. Smirking like the idiot he is, Noctis makes a show of twirling the sword around his wrist before hovering it over the cheese. “Gimme one sec—”

Ignis can’t take it any longer. He interjects with a loud, “Noct!” Both boys turn back to look at him. “You _cannot_ use a sword to cut food!”

“It’s fine,” Noctis counters, looking completely unperturbed by the prospect. “I know what I’m doing. If I can avoid chopping Gladio’s arm off in training, I can avoid ruining Prom’s kitchen.”

“You’ll destroy the cutting board—”

“Nah, I’ll be careful, really—”

“It’s fine!” Prompto squeaks, pulling his dishwasher open and hurriedly pulling a knife out of it. He darts to the sink and starts rinsing it, scooping on too much soap from the nearby dispenser. “Here, it’s washed!” He shakes the knife out over the sink, then slides it towards Noctis like a frightful offering to the Six. Noctis begrudgingly lets his sword go and accepts the gift.

He chops the cheese into chunky, mismatched pieces, while Prompto recovers and pulls out a pan to put the bread on. Ignis looks on, mortified, as they layer ketchup and cheese onto the thick slices. 

Once the pan’s full, Prompto wonders aloud, “How long do we cook them for? And what temperature?”

Noctis stares at the pan blankly before turning to Ignis, who holds his silence. It’s not even a desire to leave them alone anymore—he actually has no idea how long to cook cheese-ketchup-bread. He feels like no amount of time and heat could save that. 

Shrugging, Noctis decides, “Forget it. We don’t need the oven; I’ll just blast it with some fire ‘til it looks right.” Then he rolls up his sleeves, stepping back from the counter. Prompto scrambles to get out of the way, and Ignis snaps. 

He steps between Noctis and the ‘food.’ “No. _No_. This is exactly why you needed supervising.”

Noctis flushes as though _Ignis_ is the one being embarrassing. “Get outta the way, Specs, I know what I’m doing—”

“You most certainly _do not._ If you must have pizza that badly, we’ll order in and _I’ll_ pay.”

“Oh, but—” Prompto starts, but he cuts off when Ignis gives him a _look_. Instead, Prompto dons a meek smile and says, “Thanks, Iggy.”

Pouting like a toddler, Noctis presses, “At least let me nuke the pizza we got—”

“That is _not_ pizza. Now, both of you go back to the couch and play some games while I clean this up, so the Argentums don’t think His Majesty has raised a complete slob.”

Noctis glares, but Prompto has the decency to look chastised. He offers another small, “Thank you,” and drags Noctis back to the couch. 

Ignis stays behind to call the nearest pizza place and clean up the mess, wondering the whole time where he went so wrong.


End file.
